You have to wonder how much worse it can get.
Just look at the past week:
Flagship state for unemployment (28,000 new jobless), plummeting GST revenue, (More bad news for Tasmania. Wilkie’s plea on Health), a Labor-Liberal addiction to pokies (Heart-wrenching stories of addiction), a quaint belief in punting out of trouble (Inquiry call into Tote fiasco), continuing divisions (Cutting edge forest protest on Hobart’s waterfront last night) … Tasmania shivers and shudders even before entering its Winter of Discontent.
And now the latest, TCCI blocked from funding:
ALL state government funding of the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been suspended while an internal investigation is carried out into possible misuse of funds.
Economic Development Minister David O’Byrne made the shock announcement yesterday as he was commenting on yet another funding anomaly which the TCCI reported to the department on Friday.
It is believed the fresh controversy surrounds funding for a National Broadband Network program, NBN4Business.
Last week the chamber’s new chief executive officer Neil MacKinnon revealed an initial internal investigation had uncovered an $800,000 black hole in its budget (TT: TCCI apologies to members …, and The TCCI Board which failed to detect any anomalies).
The chamber told the government there had been “a transfer of money which was irregular”, but there was no question at that stage if it was criminal.
“Yesterday we were informed of an anomaly or an exchange of dollars which gave rise for some concern,” Mr O’Byrne said.
“As soon as the chamber of commerce discovered that, they informed us and we have immediately suspended any further exchange of finances between the government and the chamber of commerce and we will do so until that investigation is completed.”
Mr O’Byrne did not rule out a government or independent investigation but said in the first instance, the chamber had to investigate what had occurred and at this stage it did not have great cause for concern.
He has given the chamber two weeks to explain the incident.
Mr O’Byrne would not say how much money might be involved but described it as not a significant amount in relation to the kinds of grant programs the government funds.
In the past two years the state government had given the chamber at least $800,000 for a variety of initiatives. (Rosita Gallasch, Sunday Examiner).
Are we run by grasping, clubby idiots (Toe the line or you don’t work in Tasmania)?
Or is it all the Greenies’ fault?
On Friday union boss – and Rudd decapitation co-conspirator – Paul Howes had a simple solution, Go back to the days of Electric Eric and The Emperor. He’s a dig-it-up-chop-it-down sort of guy, he unashamedly says.
It’s not going to work Mr Howes. You can only be a quarry for so long.
Perhaps, Mr Howes, The Emperor really had no clothes.
Tasmania has often led the nation.
It just may be that we are doing it again.
Perhaps, we are the canary in the mine of a Paradigm Shift from The Old Ways of Doing Things (Geoff, it’s far worse: Forestry Tasmania’s shrinking estate and Chemicals: The dismal failure and Toe the line or you don’t work in Tasmania)
Perhaps it’s the 21st century Luddites who are holding us back …
Whatever, this is going to be a painful shift, which no amount of mainstream media boosterism is going to save us from …
• SECRECY AROUND HYDRO’S MALAYSIAN DAM CONSULTANCY
Tasmanian Power Users Left Exposed
Kim Booth MP
Greens Energy Spokesperson
The Tasmanian Greens today expressed concern over the lack of transparency around Hydro Tasmania’s risky hydroelectric dam building venture in Malaysia, which had potentially exposed the Tasmanian public to further power price rises.
Greens Energy spokesperson Kim Booth MP said his Right to Information request regarding Hydro subsidiary Entura Energy’s consultancy work for the Bakun Dam project in Sarawak had been refused on questionable commercial in-confidence grounds.
“The refusal to provide a response leaves the public in the dark about the potential risks that Entura is taking in their overseas adventures,” Mr Booth said.
“The Energy Minister needs to rule out the taxpayer being financially liable in the event of a dam failure, or some other critical problem with this controversial project.”
“Following on from the TOTE debacle, this raises clear questions of the Minister’s oversight into the decision to undertake a venture in Malaysia that potentially exposed taxpayers to serious financial risks, leading to inevitable power price increases.”
“We know that the Bakun dam has displaced at least 9000 families in Sarawak and flooded 7000 square kilometres of land, much of which is critical rainforest.”
“We also know from the conclusions drawn in the Final Report by the Expert Electricity Panel that Hydro Tasmania appears to be empire building as it spends public dividends on building corporate arms like Entura.”
“Hydro Tasmania should clearly be focusing and spending money on their core business, which is delivering energy at the cheapest possible price to Tasmanians.”
“I have sent a letter seeking a review of this decision by Hydro Tasmania and will be challenging their claim that no information can be released about this project because of their interpretation of the RTI Act of what is ‘commercial in confidence’ and what information is in the public interest.”
“The Tasmanian public has a right to know what work the consultancy arm of Hydro Tasmania is undertaking and to make sure they are not unnecessarily undertaking risky projects that are potentially contrary to their own principles, as well as international social and human rights.”
Download:
1. Letter to Hydro Tasmania appealing Right to Information decision (8 May 2012) 2. Letter from Hydro Tasmania to Kim Booth MP concerning Entura RTI (20 April 2012):
May_13_Application_for_Internal_Review_ATTACH.pdf
May13_Hydro_decision_re_Entura_RTI_ATTACH.pdf
• … First raised on TT (with not a hint of mainstream media interest)
• ABC Online: Power price relief ‘overdue’
